Science

 

Science is implemented through the Kapow Primary Science scheme, providing a coherent progression of substantive knowledge and working scientifically skills from the Early Years through to Year 6. Units are deliberately sequenced so that pupils revisit important concepts in increasingly complex contexts, enabling knowledge to build cumulatively over time.

Teaching follows Ascot Road's whole-school pedagogical framework of Revisit and Review, Teach, Practice and Apply, with checking for understanding embedded throughout. Teachers activate relevant prior knowledge before explicitly introducing new scientific concepts and vocabulary. Pupils then practise and apply their understanding through discussion, observation, practical activities and scientific enquiry.

Scientific enquiry is woven throughout the curriculum rather than taught as a separate body of knowledge. Pupils progressively develop the skills to ask questions, make predictions, decide how to investigate, observe and measure accurately, record findings, identify patterns, interpret results, draw conclusions and evaluate the effectiveness of an enquiry. As pupils progress through school, they take increasing ownership of these decisions.

Practical investigation is used purposefully to deepen scientific understanding. Teachers ensure that practical activities have a clear learning intention and require pupils to think scientifically rather than simply follow a set of instructions. Pupils are encouraged to make predictions based on prior knowledge, consider variables, identify patterns and use evidence to support or challenge their ideas.

 

The Kapow curriculum includes dedicated Making connections units, which provide opportunities for pupils to revisit and combine knowledge from different areas of Science. These investigations become progressively more demanding, from exploring science through stories in Year 1 and investigating plant-based materials in Year 2 to enquiries involving grip strength, the flow of liquids, asteroid craters and the effectiveness of sunglasses in Key Stage 2.

 

Scientific vocabulary is explicitly taught, modelled and revisited. Teachers support pupils to move from everyday language towards increasingly precise subject-specific terminology and expect pupils to use scientific vocabulary when speaking and writing about their observations, explanations and conclusions.

 

Teachers model the processes of scientific thinking, including how to ask productive questions, construct explanations and draw conclusions from evidence. Checking for understanding is used throughout lessons to identify misconceptions promptly. These misconceptions are addressed through further explanation, modelling, practical experience or retrieval before pupils progress to more complex learning.

 

Pupils record scientific learning in a range of appropriate ways. Depending on the purpose of the learning, this may include annotated diagrams, tables, graphs, labelled drawings, written explanations, photographs of practical work or formal investigation records. Recording is purposeful and supports scientific thinking rather than becoming the focus of the lesson.

 

Opportunities are provided for pupils to apply mathematics within meaningful scientific contexts, including measuring, collecting data, calculating, constructing tables and graphs and interpreting patterns. Reading, speaking and writing are similarly developed as pupils encounter scientific texts, discuss hypotheses and communicate explanations and conclusions.

 

In the Early Years, scientific foundations are established primarily through Understanding the World: The Natural World. Kapow's EYFS units – Animal adventures, I am a scientist, Our beautiful planet and Changing seasons – enable children to explore living things, materials, forces, plants, the environment and seasonal change through practical and play-based experiences.

 

Children investigate where animals live and what they need, explore pushes and pulls, floating and sinking, and changes to materials, observe and grow plants and investigate changes in weather and seasons across the year. Through these experiences, pupils begin to observe carefully, notice similarities and differences, ask questions and explain what they discover.

 

Early scientific development is closely connected to Communication and Language, as children learn vocabulary to describe observations and explain ideas. Physical Development supports their ability to handle equipment and natural objects carefully, while continuous provision allows children to revisit scientific ideas independently through exploration and purposeful play. Adult-led experiences explicitly model enquiry, vocabulary and safe investigation so that children enter Year 1 ready to build upon these foundations.

 

Subject leadership supports high-quality implementation through curriculum monitoring, work scrutiny, pupil voice, learning walks and professional dialogue. This enables leaders to evaluate the consistency of provision, identify areas for development and ensure that pupils are progressively building both scientific knowledge and the ability to work scientifically.

 

The impact of our Science curriculum is seen in pupils who develop a secure, connected and increasingly sophisticated understanding of scientific concepts across biology, chemistry and physics. Pupils are able to retrieve previous knowledge, make connections between different areas of Science and apply what they know when encountering unfamiliar questions and contexts.

 

Pupils demonstrate increasingly confident scientific thinking. They ask relevant questions, make reasoned predictions, select appropriate approaches to enquiry, observe and measure accurately, record and present information appropriately and use evidence to draw conclusions. As they progress through the school, pupils become increasingly able to evaluate the quality of evidence and recognise limitations within investigations.

 

Pupils understand that scientific conclusions should be based upon evidence rather than assumption. They demonstrate Honesty by recording results accurately, including findings that do not match their original predictions, and understand that unexpected outcomes are a valuable part of scientific enquiry.

 

Pupils use increasingly precise scientific vocabulary to explain concepts, describe processes and communicate findings. They can talk confidently about what they have learned, explain connections with previous units and use scientific reasoning to justify their ideas.

 

Practical science contributes to pupils becoming collaborative and increasingly independent learners. They demonstrate Respect and Kindness when working with others, Responsibility when using equipment and conducting investigations safely, and Fairness when sharing resources, roles and opportunities to contribute.

 

By the end of Key Stage 2, pupils have developed a secure foundation for secondary Science. They understand significant concepts relating to living things, the human body, materials, forces, Earth and space, light, electricity and evolution and can use their disciplinary knowledge to investigate scientific questions with increasing independence.

 

Pupils also recognise the wider relevance of Science. They understand how scientific knowledge informs decisions relating to health, technology, sustainability and the environment and appreciate that scientific understanding continues to develop as new evidence becomes available.

 

The wider impact of Science is reflected in pupils' belief that science belongs to everyone. They see themselves as capable of engaging with scientific ideas, recognise the contributions of a diverse range of scientists and understand that their own questions and ideas have value. This strengthens pupils' sense of belonging within the subject and supports positive aspirations for future learning and careers.

 

Curriculum impact is evaluated through pupils' work, pupil voice, teacher assessment, practical investigations, retrieval activities and pupils' ability to explain and apply their learning. Subject monitoring considers whether pupils are developing both secure substantive knowledge and increasingly sophisticated disciplinary knowledge so that they know more, remember more and can do more over time.

 

At Ascot Road Primary School, Science is inclusive by design. We believe every pupil should be able to experience the excitement of scientific discovery and see themselves as capable of succeeding within the subject. High expectations are maintained for pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, with adaptations made to remove barriers rather than unnecessarily reduce curriculum ambition.

 

Teachers identify the essential scientific knowledge, vocabulary and enquiry skills within each lesson and anticipate potential barriers to participation. Adaptations are selected according to pupils' individual needs and may include visual representations, diagrams, concrete resources, practical demonstrations, chunked instructions, step-by-step modelling and structured opportunities for repetition and retrieval.

 

Scientific vocabulary can present a particular barrier to understanding. Key terminology may therefore be pre-taught, accompanied by visual representations and revisited frequently. Pupils are given opportunities to hear, say and apply vocabulary in practical and spoken contexts before being expected to use it independently in written explanations.

 

Practical Science provides valuable opportunities for pupils to demonstrate understanding without relying solely upon extended written recording. Where appropriate, pupils may communicate scientific understanding through oral explanation, labelled diagrams, photographs, practical demonstration, tables or other accessible forms of recording. Adaptation of recording does not reduce the complexity of the scientific thinking expected.

 

Teachers carefully consider sensory, physical, communication and processing needs when planning practical investigations. Equipment, groupings, instructions and the physical environment are adapted where necessary so that pupils are able to participate safely and as independently as possible.

 

Complex enquiries are broken into manageable stages, with teachers modelling the thinking involved at each point. Structured prompts may support pupils in identifying variables, making predictions, interpreting results or drawing conclusions while ensuring that the intellectual work remains with the pupil wherever possible.

 

Adult support is deployed purposefully to facilitate access and independence rather than creating dependence. Checking for understanding enables misconceptions to be identified quickly so that pupils can receive additional explanation, practical experience or rehearsal before learning moves forward.

 

Pupils who demonstrate secure understanding are challenged through greater depth rather than simply additional content. They may be expected to plan investigations with increased independence, explain anomalies, critique methods, identify limitations, analyse more complex data or apply their scientific knowledge to unfamiliar contexts.

 

Through this approach, our value of Fairness is understood as equity rather than uniformity: pupils may require different resources, scaffolds or forms of support, but all are entitled to participate in and succeed within an ambitious Science curriculum. This supports every pupil in developing a genuine sense of belonging as a scientist at Ascot Road.

 

 

Science is a global human endeavour, and our curriculum enables pupils to recognise that scientific knowledge has developed through the observations, questions, discoveries and contributions of people from a wide range of cultures, countries, backgrounds and periods of history.

We seek to ensure that the scientists and scientific achievements pupils encounter broaden their understanding of who can be a scientist. Pupils are exposed to a diverse range of individuals and are encouraged to challenge stereotypes relating to science, gender, ethnicity, disability or background. This is an important part of ensuring that every child feels that they belong within Science and can envisage themselves pursuing further study or careers connected to the subject.

 

Where scientists are encountered within the Kapow curriculum, their work is placed within meaningful scientific contexts rather than presented as isolated biographies. For example, pupils encounter the work of Jane Goodall when studying animals in Year 1 and learn about Carl Linnaeus and the development of classification systems in Year 6. During the study of evolution and inheritance, pupils explore how Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace used observation and evidence to develop scientific explanations.

 

Pupils learn that scientific knowledge can change as evidence develops. This supports Honesty by demonstrating that scientific understanding is strengthened when ideas are questioned, tested and revised rather than accepted without evidence. It also enables pupils to recognise that science develops collaboratively across generations and cultures.

 

Our Science curriculum provides meaningful opportunities to develop Respect and Kindness towards living things and the natural environment. Through the study of habitats, plant growth, changing environments, life cycles and ecosystems, pupils consider the interconnected nature of living things and how human actions can have both positive and negative consequences.

Responsibility is particularly developed through scientific learning related to environmental impact and sustainability. For example, pupils consider reducing, reusing and recycling when investigating plant-based materials in Year 2, explore human impact on changing habitats in Year 4 and consider the effects of climate change on living things within later study. Pupils are encouraged to recognise that scientific understanding can inform responsible choices about the future of the planet.

 

Science also enables pupils to consider issues of Fairness. Scientific and technological developments can improve health, safety and quality of life, but access to resources, technology and scientific advancement is not always equal. At an age-appropriate level, pupils are encouraged to consider the impact of scientific decisions on different people, communities and environments.

 

The curriculum reflects the diversity of the natural world itself. Pupils explore animals and habitats locally and globally, compare different forms of life, investigate the diversity of living organisms and develop an understanding of inheritance, adaptation and evolution. Through this learning, pupils recognise diversity as a fundamental feature of the natural world.

 

Ultimately, Science helps pupils understand that they are both part of the natural world and capable of influencing it. Through developing curiosity, evidence-based thinking and an appreciation of diverse scientific contributions, pupils leave Ascot Road understanding that Science is relevant to their lives, their communities and their future. They recognise their Responsibility to use knowledge thoughtfully and develop a secure sense that they belong within a global community of people who observe, question, investigate and seek to understand the world.